The Right Choices
by Kajune
Summary: Izaya doesn't want his rivalry to end, yet everyone in Ikebukuro are beginning to think it might as well finish. Desperate, to the point of obsession, Izaya ends up making bad choices that backfire on him, and the only one who can save him...is Shizuo.
1. Caught

**Title** : The Right Choices

**Disclaimer **: I do not own any of the Characters of Durarara!.

**Genre **: Hurt / Comfort / Romance

**Warning **: Contains maleXmale content. OOCness. OCs.

**Summary** : Izaya doesn't want his rivalry to end, yet everyone in Ikebukuro are beginning to think it might as well finish. Desperate, to the point of obsession, Izaya ends up making bad choices that backfire on him, and the only one who can save him...is Shizuo.

* * *

**Caught**

* * *

The town, Ikebukuro, is once again in its usual peaceful self. The many tiny events that occur are all what people expect, are used to, and sometimes enjoy. From the tall dark man looking for customers outside the Russian sushi bar, the going and coming from schools of the many students, the regular sights of couples holding hands in the streets, the constant throwing heavy objects of the bartender-dressed man at a darkly-dressed man, to the chasing by cops of the mysterious being wearing a helmet.

All seems as it should be for Ikebukuro, and although it is not spoken much, all the citizens wish for it to remain that way.

For every single day, including today.

_SMASH!_

Yet another trash can finds itself smashing into the wall and windows of an innocent, occupied building. It was truly not the target, but the one who - just a minute ago - was standing outside by one of its many railings, had managed to dash out of harm's way, and leave many people inside the building...frightened.

Some citizens watch in mild to extreme amusement as the blonde-haired man, known as the town's strongest, continues to throw whatever heavy object he can reach, at the one who does so well at dodging, by jumping from building to building, roof to roof, and alleyway to alleyway.

As dangerous as their little, constant games of chase seem, people acknowledge that from time to time, it is bound to occur, usually starting with the blonde exclaiming this one, funny name. He is doing so right now.

"I...ZA...YA...-KUN...!"

...and there goes yet _another_ stop sign, and once again, does the black-haired man dodge it, causing it to hit yet another unfortunate building. The damage done by the end of each chase costs a fortune, but since no one dares to upset the town's strongest, let alone tell him off (except for the black Russian), people tend to drop the blame and simply watch whenever the smaller man appears.

Just a single glance at each other, and the blonde goes into a boiling rage.

A little laugh slips from the darker one's lips, and off he goes, to be chased by the taller man, leaving those present to either follow if they wish, or continue their lives as they have been doing. As their destructive chase moves to a new part of the town, more and more people become aware that once again, a fascinating show has started.

Many people have suffered casualties from this, but still not dare complain. Some, especially gangsters, would like to put the blame on at least the dark one, since his presence alone is what causes the blonde to go mad. It isn't until he is out of sight or out of town, does the blonde finally calm down.

Today, their chase seems exceptionally long-lasting.

The one named Izaya continues to flee, unafraid and clearly amused of this 'game' they play. Sometimes he would play the role of the attacker, by throwing objects back, causing other objects to tumble down upon his pursuer, or even by leading him into a trap, all of which _do_ hit the target, yet merely slow him down...or simply make him more mad.

Eventually, after hours of running, Izaya finds himself losing his breath, while the other man, seems to be fully ready for a whole day of this.

Running into an alley, Izaya hopes to conceal himself in the dark. Placing his hand upon the dirty wall, he leans forward slightly to pant. Soon, does that loud voice call his name, but just as he was expecting it to go by, the blonde stops after running past the dark passage, and, with the stop sign in his hand, slowly approaches the alley.

Izaya, although he can't be seen, is shocked to see his rival standing by the entrance, looking calmer than before, but still dead-angry.

'Damn it'. He curses in his mind.

As quietly as possible, Izaya attempts to move forward, hoping to get away without being noticed. Should he be caught, he knows that for certain, he will be crushed. However...

"I know you're there, Izaya-kun."

He freezes. There is obviously no way the other man can see him within complete darkness. The sun's slowly darkening light is only shining on him from behind, yet he sounds so certain of his findings. Izaya then looks back at him, directly in the eye through the glasses, as if questioning his statement.

"I can smell it."

The blonde responds, further surprising the worn-out foe. He takes a step forward, and Izaya, worried he'll make a sound, hesitates moving, but knows how clear it is that staying there, will cause him death. He has yet to want to die.

Sadly, the moment his foot brushes forward, does it accidently knock a tiny rock, thus causing sound.

The blonde grins.

As fear begins to build up rapidly in the raven-haired, the tall man reaches out, "There you are!", shouting, he grabs Izaya by the shoulder, and from the darkness, pulls him out into the sun's reach. Gripping the collar of his shirt also, the tall one has the smaller one's face looking directly at him.

Fear.

He can see nothing but utter fear.

Though only for a moment.

However, he remains certain that it exists, the mere sight of it, excites him, pleases him.

He now has his prey.

"This time," He joyfully whispers, watching carefully as the so-called 'flea' begins to form a smile, though it is obviously a fake, stubborn smile. Izaya truly feels the touch of death right now. "I win."

Raising a fist in the air, the blonde removes his grin, Izaya squeezes his eyes shut, and so comes down, the fist.

Blood is splattered.


	2. Spared

**Title** : The Right Choices

**Disclaimer **: I do not own any of the Characters of Durarara!.

* * *

**Spared**

* * *

Izaya's body flinches suddenly, his eyes snap open, and upon getting attacked by blinding white light, he hastily sits up, forearm over his sealed-shut eyes, though he immediately regrets his actions, due to the sudden rise from what felt like a soft pillow, resulting in a severely painful headache.

'Urg...!'

Only seconds later, does his weak form fall back down, slamming itself upon the softness of a puffy pillow and a few layers of comfortable sheets. He breathes deeply for a bit, before carefully opening his eyes towards his left. To his surprise, he hazily sees the face of his former classmate, now underground doctor: Shinra.

The man is smiling at him with an overly joyful grin, that is pissing him off.

"Oh, Orihara-kun, you're awake~" Shinra says, almost in a singing tone. What is there to be happy about, the raven wonders, but simply glares at his friend while his unexpected headache begins to subside. "You gave me a shock when you sat up suddenly." The doctor admits, though this is hardly any of Izaya's concern, yet he continues to listen, hoping for something with actual relevance to his current condition, like...

Where, how and why is he here? Whatever here is.

"You shouldn't do that, especially with that blow to the head." Shinra explains, though his words seem to land an impact on Izaya, whose eyes widen in surprise. A head injury? Realizing now, Izaya's hand automatically rises to touch his head, where he can feel a bandage wrapped around it. His fingers gently brush over one particular spot that has an extra layer on top, and stings a bit upon contact. He remembers very faintly having been hit on the head there, but...

His mind begins to trail off in search of the missing memories, while his eyes are fixed facing forward and his ears remain focused on Shinra; he is feeling quite overwhelmed at the moment.

"You're lucky Shizuo-kun didn't break your skull open," The name rings a bell, one loud enough for memories to come rushing back. "though he did quite a number on you everywhere else." Shinra's finger points along Izaya's resting form, trying to emphasis on just how true his words are. Though he did not personally examine his aloof friend, afraid he'll get another earful of questions regarding any chances of having dissected him, he _has_ read the reports and heard the doctors' opinions.

It surprised him at first, but he felt relieved overall.

His memories all back, Izaya just stares at the ceiling, no longer irritated by the light shining from above. His expression is almost blank, save for those eyes that seem to hold a much deeper, darker emotion, one that Shinra cannot read and dares not to try.

"So Shizu-chan...failed to kill me."

The doctor/friend smiles widely, almost like someone about to laugh, but he doesn't find death a laughable subject, so he merely expresses relief, whether the other cares to look back at him or not.

"On the contrary, he did not kill you on purpose."

Shock, is what spreads across those features instantly.

"What!?"

Izaya snaps back out of bed again, causing the intense headache to rush at him again, though the boiling rage within him keeps him strongly determined to ignore all distractions and get to the truth. His eyes are clearly full of anger as they glare nearly downwards on the seated one.

"Are you saying he spared me!? Why!? Why would Shizu-chan-"

Before his words could finish, before his voice could rise to the point of alerting nearby doctors and nurses, and before he could pain the ears of Shinra so much that he'll just walk straight out, the calm looking doctor bluntly cuts in.

"Why would Shizuo-kun want to kill anyone who can't do him any harm?" Izaya goes quiet, but remains sitting upwards despite the pain. "Sure, you've angered him for years and years but, yesterday, he finally got you and chose to spare your life." He pauses slightly, taking the brief moment to see any change in Izaya's reaction; he doesn't want the raven to lash out at him again with any nonsense. "He's said it many times that he wants to kill you, but deep down, Shizuo-kun isn't a killer, so there's no reason for him to change that about him."

As hoped, there is no screaming back, but the glare remains heavily intense.

"You're delusional, Shinra. Shizu-chan is a monster. Monsters kill."

Shinra frowns at this, especially when he notices a smile nearly creep over the other's face. "Stop saying that. I agree that Shizuo-kun is 'special', but can't you at least be thankful that after all these years he has actually chosen to let you live?"

The smile becomes more apparent now, and Shinra is beginning to think that any further attempt at changing the other's perspective is useless.

The raven holds down the slight urge to laugh.

"How can I swallow the thought of a _monster_ like Shizu-chan pretending to be a human? I love humans, therefore, I can tell the difference. It sickens me to think that, by sparing me, he can try and act like he's normal, like he's weak, like every other human being around." Shinra glares slightly, sensing that his friend is about to start one of his senseless rambles, that nearly sound like selfish bragging. Though, for the sake of their friendship, he resists the idea of walking out now.

"Humans and monsters are very different, don't you know? So even if one tries to act like the other, they can never truly succeed. But if one does try, it can get a bit annoying...because..." Izaya's words trail off, not because he is out of ideas, in fact, he has an hour-long speech ready to be said to anyone smart enough to listen. What's disturbing his most-likely long talk is the sudden spark of pain in his abdomen, his cheeks, his teeth, his chest, and one of his legs.

He failed to notice them until now, and it seems they are all aching from powerful blows, probably from Shizuo's fists. Shinra watches intently with a mixture of concern and pity as the other goes silent for a bit, his body wobbling slightly as he tries to compose himself, and hold down all the symptoms of weakness he is slightly revealing.

With a heavy sigh, he soon returns his gaze to Shinra; a forced smile is present on his fairly pale features. "As I was saying, monsters can never be humans, and humans are certainly not monsters." Shinra sighs in surrender, realizing that like usual, this man isn't going to submit to any pain nor suffering easily, but would much prefer that he did, for anyone's sake. One can't have a stubborn informant trying to act cool under such severe agony; it just doesn't seem right.

Rising to his feet, Shinra approaches his smirking friend who is lying himself back down, and assists him with one hand on his back, enabling a gentle landing onto the bed. All the while, he says... "Yeah yeah, I heard you. Now, just, get some rest. It'll help you recover."

That being obvious, Izaya doesn't say anything further, and pretends to fall asleep by closing his eyes. Shinra, having gotten used to this persistent act, simply accepts the other's bad behavior and walks out silently, opening and closing the door in defeat. Once alone, Izaya passes out almost immediately.


End file.
